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Forums - Politics Discussion - Israel-Hamas war, Gaza genocide

SvennoJ 7 hours ago

Netanyahu must resign as Israel has ‘lost confidence’ in him

As we reported earlier, Netanyahu intends to force out the head of the internal security agency, Shin Bet, causing another political firestorm.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid said it is Netanyahu who must resign.

“If a loss of confidence is a reason for dismissal, then the first person to be dismissed is Netanyahu. Israel has lost confidence in him,” he told the Israeli broadcasting authority.

Yair Golan, another opposition politician, said he has been warning for years that Israel is “sliding towards dictatorship”.

“The government wants to give itself the right to do whatever it wants based on the orders of a corrupt person,” he said, according to Israeli media. “Netanyahu thinks he is a supreme ruler who can do whatever he wants.”

Shin Bet chief should have been fired a long time ago: Smotrich

Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has sided with PM Netanyahu in his efforts to dismiss the head of the internal security agency Shin Bet.

He said Ronen Bar should have been fired a long time ago, adding he “was supposed to return home on October 8” – the day after the Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel.

The Shin Bet chief is “personally responsible for a terrible mistake that led to the greatest disaster in Israel’s history” as he guarded “an imaginary political threshold” instead of the barriers with Gaza, Smotrich said.

The comments come as Israeli opposition politicians push back against Bar’s dismissal, and Israeli media report several organisations opposed to the government are planning a protest on Wednesday to reject the move.


Israel’s UN ambassador slams report on military’s gender-based violence

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, has penned an opinion piece in opposition to an independent UN commission report documenting disproportionate violence against Palestinian women by Israeli troops throughout the Gaza war.

The report, presented to the UN Human Rights Council last week, documented the outsized impacts of Israel’s military campaigns and blockage of aid to Gaza on women, as well as “sexual, reproductive and other forms of gender-based violence” used by Israel throughout the invasion.

In a piece published by the Jerusalem Post, Danon called the UN Human Rights Council “not a serious institution” and an “incubator for Jew hatred”.

Critics have regularly accused Israel’s officials of claiming anti-Semitism to silence criticism of its military actions.



Around the Network
SvennoJ 7 hours ago

EU foreign policy chief backs Arab-led Gaza reconstruction plan

“We welcome the Arab reconstruction plan, Gaza reconstruction plan, and try to help as much as we can,” said Kaja Kallas before the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels.

She stressed the importance of global cooperation to help stabilise Gaza, affirming the EU’s readiness to step in with support.

As we’ve reported, Arab leaders have rallied around a $53bn Gaza reconstruction plan that envisions a technocratic government and new housing and infrastructure for the whole population.

 

Egypt conference on funding for Gaza healthcare rehabilitation

Egyptian officials have hosted a meeting of more than 100 ambassadors, government representatives, and international organisations to discuss rebuilding the health sector destroyed by Israel in the Gaza Strip.

The country’s reconstruction plan for the enclave “has received broad regional and international support”, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Egypt is working on a conference in Cairo to secure the necessary funding for the implementation of the plan.



SvennoJ 7 hours ago

‘Everything negotiated before doesn’t look like it’s worthy any more’

With Gaza truce talks ongoing in Cairo, Luciano Zaccara from Qatar University says it appears the US is attempting to chart its own course by demanding Hamas release American captives.

“It looks like the United States is only focusing on its own people, which shows how personally foreign policy is being decided with Trump back in power, and how things are aligned with his main interests in the region,” Zaccara told Al Jazeera.

He noted the original Gaza ceasefire signed in January was approved by the Biden administration and the UN Security Council, however, “last-minute changes” have now been proposed.

“Everything that was negotiated before doesn’t look like it’s worthy any more,” said Zaccara.


Most Israeli ministers want to ‘resume fighting’ in Gaza

Alon Liel, the former director general of Israel’s Foreign Ministry, says Israel “reluctantly” sent its negotiating team back to Egypt for Gaza truce talks, with the United States “running the show in Cairo”.

“Most of the Israeli ministers would like to resume fighting to achieve what seems to them the number one goal of the war: Destroying Hamas,” Liel told Al Jazeera.

“Each time Israel presents its view, the United States gets closer to our view. It looks like the talks in Cairo wouldn’t happen if the United States would give up.”

Israel said it’s ready to resume talks based on “a bridging proposal” presented by US envoy Steve Witkoff that includes the release of 11 captives.

Hamas, however, demanded that Israel abide by the terms of the truce deal signed in January and enter the second phase as agreed.

 

US warning to Hamas after Houthi attacks a ‘game-changer’ if real

Comments by US envoy Steve Witkoff suggesting Hamas may face attacks like the Houthis did in Yemen could have significant consequences for Israel’s war on Gaza, an ex-official says.

“This American hint that they might do in Gaza what they did in Yemen – if they really mean it and do it – it’s a game-changer,” said Alon Liel, former director general of Israel’s Foreign Ministry.

“During the last 15-16 months, we did not see the United States attacking in Gaza from the air or any other way. So this president [Trump] surprises us on a daily basis. If he will attack in Gaza, it is very meaningful.”

Alon said hardline Israeli ministers who are spoiling to return to fighting in Gaza to “destroy” Hamas are not interested in “negotiating beyond the hostages”.

“Meaning you negotiate the end of the war and maybe the Arab League plan is coming into the picture, and Israel will have to speak on ‘the day after’ in Gaza. This is something Israel doesn’t want to get close to.”



SvennoJ 7 hours ago

More US strikes reported in Yemen

The Houthi-affiliated Al Masirah TV has reported United States strikes on an iron factory in the Bajil District of the western Hodeidah governorate.

The US launched a news campaign of heavy attacks on Houthi-controlled Yemen over the weekend.

The US military did not immediately confirm the latest strikes.

Houthis say they are prepared to resume attacks in solidarity with Gaza

In statements carried by the Houthi-run Al Masirah TV, Major General Mohammed Al-Atifi says the armed group is prepared to escalate its confrontation with Israel.

The Houthis had largely paused their attacks on vessels in the Red Sea in recent weeks during a ceasefire in Gaza but reportedly targeted US military vessels after the US struck positions in Yemen over the weekend.

Al-Atifi said the US strikes show the “level of bias” of the US in its support for Israel.

He added the Houthis would not “remain silent”.

Major rallies in Houthi-held areas of Yemen after deadly US strikes

Huge crowds joined protests in Houti-controlled areas of Yemen after deadly US strikes killed dozens and sparked fears of a new cycle of violence in the conflict-torn country.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators, many waving assault rifles, daggers or Qurans, chanted “Death to America, death to Israel!” in the capital Sanaa.

There were also large crowds in Saada, the birthplace of the Iran-backed Houthi movement, and demonstrations in Dhamar, Hodeidah and Amran, footage from the group’s Al Masirah TV station showed.

“Yemen will never back down. We defy the Americans, we defy the Zionists,” said a man shouting slogans to the Sanaa crowd, who chanted back: “We are the men of the prophet.”



SvennoJ 3 hours ago

Lebanon and Syria agree on ceasefire after deadly cross-border clashes

In a post on X, Lebanon’s Defence Ministry said that Minister Michel Menassa had spoken to his Syrian counterpart, Murhaf Abu Qasra.

The pair discussed recent clashes on the Lebanon-Syrian border, which prompted the Lebanese army to deploy to the area. Lebanon’s Health Ministry has said seven people have been killed in the clashes. Syria previously said three of its soldiers had been killed.

“A ceasefire agreement was reached between the two sides,” the statement said.

It added that there would be “continued communication between the Lebanese army intelligence directorate and Syrian intelligence to prevent the deterioration of the situation on the border between the two countries and avoid innocent civilian casualties”.

More US strikes reported in Yemen

Al Masirah TV, which is affiliated with the Houthis, has reported more US strikes.

The channel posted a video on Telegram of a fire in Al-Hazm city in the centre of the Al Jawf governorate to the northeast of Sanaa. The target was a government complex building in Al-Hazm District, Al Masirah TV reported.

A US general said earlier today that the US had struck at least 30 sites in Yemen since Saturday.



Around the Network
SvennoJ 3 hours ago

Main events on March 17

  • Three Palestinians have been killed in an Israeli drone strike on people gathering firewood in Gaza. A father and son were killed in a separate drone attack on a school sheltering displaced families in the territory’s central Bureij refugee camp.
  • The United States has launched new air raids on Yemen, with reports of a government complex hit in Al-Hazm city to the northeast of the capital Sanaa.
  • A US general said at least 30 sites in Yemen have been hit since US forces launched new strikes on Houthi fighters on Saturday.
  • UNICEF confirmed that at least two children, aged six and eight, were killed in US attacks on Yemen’s Saada on Saturday.
  • US President Donald Trump said he would hold Iran responsible for any attacks by Houthi fighters, as the Houthis vow to respond to US strikes and resume targeting Israeli-linked shipping if Israel does not lift a crushing, weeks-long blockade of Gaza.
  • Three people have been reported killed in Israeli attacks on the outskirts of Deraa in Syria and two others by Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon.
  • Lebanon’s Defence Ministry said a ceasefire agreement has been reached to end clashes on the Lebanon-Syrian border, where at least seven people were killed in clashes between forces from both sides.
  • A group of United Nations human rights experts has condemned the “arbitrary detention” of US permanent resident Mahmoud Khalil over pro-Palestine protests at Columbia University.

Where in Yemen has the US bombed?




SvennoJ 3 hours ago

Explosions in northern Gaza

Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic are reporting that explosions have been heard in northwest Gaza as Israeli warplanes fly overhead.

Series of explosions heard across Gaza

The Reuters news agency is also reporting that witnesses have described hearing a series of explosions across Gaza, with residents reporting several Israeli air strikes.

According to Reuters, witnesses said the strikes appear to be the largest since the January 19 ceasefire began.


Israeli army says it is widely attacking Gaza

Here’s what the army said:

“Under the direction of the political echelon, the [Israeli military] and Shin Bet are widely attacking terrorist targets of the Hamas terrorist organisation throughout the Gaza Strip.”


Several people killed in Israeli air strikes across Gaza

Al Jazeera Arabic’s correspondent in Gaza is reporting that several people have been killed and others wounded in violent Israeli raids on several areas in the Gaza Strip.

The Reuters news agency, citing medics, says that several people have been killed.


Translation: The war is back again.



SvennoJ 2 hours ago

Israeli forces bomb Mawasi

Al Jazeera Arabic’s correspondent in Gaza is reporting a number of people have been killed and injured as Israeli forces shelled tents where displaced Palestinians are staying in the Mawasi area, west of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip.


Israeli PM’s office says attacks resumed after talks failed: Report

The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office has said that Israel has resumed military operations in Gaza after Hamas rejected a US proposal to extend the ceasefire, according to Axios reporter Barak Ravid.

Israel and Hamas have been engaged in mediated negotiations after Israel refused to enter into the second phase of the ceasefire agreement, which was meant to begin following the first phase, which lasted for six weeks.


Israeli strikes kill 20 in Gaza City: Report

Al Jazeera Arabic’s correspondent is reporting that at least 20 people have been killed and more than 50 injured as a result of a series of Israeli air strikes on Gaza City, in the north of the Gaza Strip.



Translation: More than 35 Israeli air strikes have hit Gaza in the past half hour, with ambulance and civil defence crews struggling to evacuate the dead and wounded.

Death toll growing in Israeli attack on Gaza

At least 30 Palestinians have been reported killed in Israel’s attacks on Gaza, medics tell the Reuters news agency.


Israel unilaterally ending Gaza ceasefire: Hamas

A senior Hamas official has told the Reuters news agency that the Israeli attacks mean that Israel is unilaterally ending the ceasefire in Gaza that began on January 19.


Israeli minister warns ‘gates of hell’ will be opened on Gaza: Report

Israeli media has reported that the country’s defence minister, Israel Katz, said that the “gates of hell” will be opened on Gaza if Hamas does not release all the captives still held in the Palestinian territory.

Israel will unleash forces on Hamas that they “have never known before”, the minister is reported to have said.

Death toll rises to 44

At least 44 people have been killed and dozens more injured in Israeli airstrikes on homes and tents housing displaced people across the Gaza Strip, medical sources have told Al Jazeera.


Israeli PM says will use ‘increasing military strength’ against Gaza

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he instructed the military to take “strong action” against Hamas in Gaza, blaming the group for refusing to release captives and not agreeing to Israel’s proposals on the ceasefire.

“Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.

Hamas has for weeks accused Netanyahu of not being interested in bringing the fighting to an end in Gaza.



SvennoJ 2 hours ago

Death toll continues to rise in Gaza

The Reuters news agency, citing medics, says that at least 100 people have been killed, including many children, in Israeli air strikes across the Gaza Strip.

Medical sources have told Al Jazeera that at least 131 people have now been killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza.

This includes 77 people killed in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip and at least 20 people killed in Gaza City in the north of the Gaza Strip.


Israel claims Hamas commanders, political officials targeted in wave of air strikes: Report

Israel’s broadcasting authority has said the wave of attacks targeted senior figures in the Palestinian armed movement.

The Israeli military has accused Hamas of rearming its forces and preparing to carry out attacks, according to a report by the Kan broadcaster.

Hamas says Netanyahu and ‘extremist government’ moving to ‘overturn’ ceasefire

Hamas said it holds Israel’s Netanyahu and the “Nazi-Zionist occupation” responsible for the “treacherous” attacks on Gaza’s besieged and defenceless civilians that are reported to have killed more than 100 people.

“Netanyahu and his extremist government are making a decision to overturn the ceasefire agreement, exposing prisoners in Gaza to an unknown fate,” Hamas said in a statement posted on social media.

Hamas called on ceasefire mediators to hold Israel responsible, for the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to support Palestinians in “breaking the unjust siege imposed on the Gaza Strip”, and for the UN Security Council to hold an urgent meeting and adopt a resolution obligating Israel to “halt its aggression”.

Gaza authorities say death toll passes 200

The Gaza Government Media Office reports that more than 200 people have been killed in the Israeli bombing of multiple areas across the Strip in the early hours of the morning.